England beat France 6-4 to win bronze at the 2026 World Cup.
England finished their 2026 World Cup campaign with only their second finish at the podium after an entertaining 6-4 win over two-time winners France in the third-place showdown. Bukayo Saka was the star performer as he scored a hat-trick for the Three Lions.
Thomas Tuchel decided not to use Harry Kane for the entirety of the game, although the FC Bayern striker was in the running for the Golden Ball. Meanwhile, his club teammate Michael Olise wrote history as he became the first player to assist seven goals in a single edition. The previous record was held by the three-time champion Pelé during the 1970 World Cup.
Olise’s assists were for Kylian Mbappé’s brace as the French captain climbed top of both the all-time scoring chart and this tournament’s race for Golden Ball. Mbappé has scored 22 goals in 22 World Cup games, while he became the first player to reach double digits in a single tournament since West Germany’s Gerd Müller. The Real Madrid superstar finished the tournament with 14 direct goal contributions.
Former Borussia Dortmund midfielder Jude Bellingham was another player to make history as he became the first England player to score seven goals at a single World Cup edition. Bellingham scored the tenth and last goal of an attack-minded game from start to finish.
England were in cruise control at the break as Arsenal duo Declan Rice and Saka helped them to a stunning 4-0 lead. In his last game as France’s head coach, Didier Deschamps made four changes at the break. Among the substitutes, FC Bayern’s Dayot Upamecano was heavily involved in a couple of goals, while PSG duo Bradley Barcola and Ousmane Dembélé were on target.
However, Tuchel’s troops managed to see out the win as Saka completed his hat-trick from the penalty spot before former BVB stars Dembélé and Bellingham scored at either end. Olise missed a couple of Golden opportunities when France were trailing by a single goal as he finished his special tournament without scoring a goal. Bayer Leverkusen’s Jarell Quansah played 83 minutes for England.
The World Cup will be concluded tomorrow night with the final game between Spain and Argentina.
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